There are many different types of fastener used for clothing and lingerie. Perhaps the most common of these is the so-called hook and eye fastener that comprises one or more metal hooks and one or more complementary eyes for engagement by the hook. Although effective in operation, there are several shortcomings with these types of fastener. For example, it can be relatively difficult to engage the hook in the eye. This problem is exacerbated when the fastener is located to the rear of the garment and even more so if the wearer has problems with dexterity and/or flexibility.
One fastener that attempts to address these problems is that described in the applicant's own U.S. Pat. No. 8,935,835. The fastener described therein comprises a front element with a backwardly open seat cavity and a back element formed with a forwardly projecting bump. Both the bump and the seat cavity have magnets that aid the location of the bump in the seat cavity. The front and back elements have co-operating catch faces that act against unintentional separation of the fastener elements. Although a significant improvement on the existing fasteners, there is scope for improvement of the fastener described in U.S. Pat. No. 8,935,835.
Throughout this specification the fasteners are described as being used between the back wings of a brassiere, and the terms “front” and “back” are used in that context. The invention however is not limited to such use or orientation and would work equally well if reversed or applied to another application. For example, the present invention could be used as a front or side closure of a brassiere or could be used instead of buttons or as an auxiliary fastener such as next to a zip on an item of clothing or piece of luggage.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a fastener that overcomes some of the problems with the known fasteners and that provides a useful alternative to the consumer.